Ceramics are used in almost every type of material handling situation where bulk solids conveying materials wear out equipment that is used during transportation. The ceramic materials work wonderfully, as they are extremely cost effective and last long enough for preventive maintenance to take place whenever it is needed. However, there are some material handling applications where traditional ceramics will simply not cut it.

Several key properties must be considered by engineers when choosing a proper ceramic. Abrasion resistance, compressive strength, coefficient of friction and fracture toughness are just a few properties that help engineers decide if a ceramic is right for their application. Improperly evaluating a ceramic could prevent an operation from entirely optimizing.

Choosing the wrong ceramic presents a host of problems

Choosing the correct ceramic can help engineers avoid key problems that the materials handling industry faces. Issues, such as downtime and maintenance, can cause huge headaches for everyone involved in the operation. Engineers need to properly design their systems to ensure that these issues do not exist by choosing the correct ceramic.

Downtime

Downtime is a very simple concept to understand, however it has dire consequences from both a production and business standpoint. If a ceramic fails during operation, the entire material handling process will be pushed to a standstill. Even just an hour of downtime can cost companies millions of dollars.

Traditional ceramics may often cause downtime as they will break down more quickly than their newer counterparts. Even though traditional ceramics will cost less in the short term, they may end up with a higher total cost after accounting for downtime and maintenance.

Maintenance

Eventually, all ceramics will need to be replaced or repaired in any material handling operation. Thus, engineers need to ensure that plants are designed for preventive maintenance. Maintenance teams need to prepare for ceramic repairs during off hours. Non-scheduled maintenance will shut processes down and set the entire operation back, and therefore should be avoided at all costs.

Low-impact resistance

Traditional ceramics are optimal for many abrasive material handling operations as they are the most cost-effective material. For applications with high impact, traditional ceramics will fail. It may be important to define impact before discussing the issues with traditional ceramics. Impact can be defined as the ability of a material to resist mechanical impact without undergoing any changes.

When the impingement angle is less than 30° in sliding wear abrasion applications, traditional ceramics will perform as needed without delaying operations. However, once that angle is more than 30° and the size or density of the particles striking the ceramics begins to increase, the ceramic will start to fail. The ceramic material will erode at a rate faster than proper maintenance can keep up with, and the added stress will cause micro-cracks, grain pullout and even fracturing.

Figure 1: Mining abrasive material application. Source: Saint-Gobain Performance Ceramics

Naturally, engineers would want to use a ceramic material with the highest impact resistance. Unfortunately, that is not realistic as there are cost constraints that need to be taken into consideration. These issues can be mitigated if newer ceramics are embraced.

Benefits of Durastrike™ ZTA

Saint-Gobain has developed a new type of ceramic that can improve any material handling operation where impact is a concern.

Durastrike™ ZTA is in a special class of ceramics. The material undergoes a phase change as a result of the mechanical stress applied, which is known as transformation toughening. Zirconia is present in the tetragonal phase within the alumina matrix. Cracks will begin to form in the material and the instability in the system forces the zirconia to undergo phase changes into monoclinic zirconia. This phase change does not spread throughout the entire system, as the volume expansion will close off the crack tip. Durastrike™ ZTA outperforms traditional dense aluminum oxide ceramics, like Saint-Gobain’s Durafrax® up to 50% to 60%, depending on the final application.

Improved impact performance

Traditional ceramics will fail due to their lack of impact resistance, while Durastrike™ ZTA will handle the increased forces. In any application where there is a high angle of impingement, a large particle size, high particle velocity or high material density, Durastrike™ ZTA will outperform traditional ceramics. The impact resistance of Durastrike™ ZTA is 40% to 50% higher than Durafrax®. The erosive wear will be significantly less over the same period of time.

Figure 2: Abrasive material ship-loading operation. Source: Saint-Gobain Performance Ceramics

Wear resistance for longer service life

Not only does Durastrike™ ZTA have a higher impact resistance, the ceramic will also last longer in most material handling applications. Durastrike™ ZTA’s ability to resist erosive wear allows the ceramic material to have a longer life cycle compared to traditional ceramics. In all abrasive material handling operations, Durastrike™ ZTA will improve end operations and efficiency.

Conclusion

Durastrike™ ZTA can be used in a number of applications. Material handling applications, such as chutes, distributors, transfer buckets, piping and more will see significantly less downtime as the ceramic material will need less unexpected maintenance. Additionally, there are many applications where ceramics simply would never have been considered in the first place. Durastrike™ ZTA is opening up new doors to applications with its improved set of properties.

Durastrike™ ZTA will survive in many applications where traditional ceramics will fail. Organizations can enjoy the benefits of this new material and improve operations. Compared to traditional ceramics, Durastrike™ ZTA will create all-around efficiency — less downtime, higher throughput and immense operational cost savings, ultimately creating a more profitable organization. Contact Saint-Gobain Performance Ceramics & Refractories today to learn more about how Durastrike™ ZTA will improve an organization’s processes and download the brochure of Durastrike ZTA to know more.

Saint-Gobain Performance Ceramics & Refractories